Seize the Day

In Saul Bellow's title novella, Tommy Wilhelm, at 42, is in the midst of what seems to be a serious decline. He is separated from his wife and family, estranged from his father, unemployed, and broke. Over the course of one day, Tommy reviews the shape of his past and attempts to plot the course of his future--and has a valuable moment of insight when he aimlessly drifts into the funeral of a man he doesn't know. SEIZE THE DAY is a bleak, compassionate tale, widely considered one of Bellow's best novels. Accompanying it are three short stories and a one-act play.